Review of A Nightmare on Elm Street 3: Dream Warriors (1987) by Brett H — 10 Oct 2015

A Nightmare on Elm Street 3 was the logical continuation for the series after the panned second feature that steps up its game with brilliant set-pieces and amazing special effects that hold up well today.

Wisely ignoring the continuity of part 2, we're introduced to a new character, Kristen, played by Patricia Arquette in her debut acting role and while she's not as iconic as Nancy from the original, she does a pretty good job.

Speaking of which, Nancy returns for this film and plays a pivotal role in training the Elm Street kids to battle Freddy in their dreams through various means, and it's these ideas that make this the strongest sequel in the franchise.

Robert Englund as Freddy perfected his balance of menace and humour and we learn much more about the character's backstory and the details are pretty messed up. The highlight of this film is of course, the kills, and they are highly creative and memorable, the scene with the sleepwalking teen is disgustingly awesome! There are a few missteps near the end with Freddy manipulating his own skeleton in the real world somehow and they actually kill off an important character for the sake of shock value, but it's easily the most entertaining entry in the series and the production values are incredible!